Sharp as Knives
by Kmsitterley
Summary: She'd always been patient and cunning. She'd always been willing to do what it took to defend those whom she loved. And now, she has everything she wanted. Take a glimpse at who Mai really is and the life she now faces. "She was someone born amongst war; but unlike the others, she was born unafraid." Oneshot about Mai's life after the war.


**Yaayyyy Mai! Mai is cool... well honestly she's not my favorite but she's crazy awesome in The Boiling Rock! :D **

**So this is a follow up of Mai after the war. Enjoy!**

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She was smart, brave, and cunning. She had learned how to wait and be patient for the things she desired. She'd sat in that cell for weeks, waiting. She'd never doubted in him. That's why she sacrificed her high standing, her reputation, and her freedom so he could get away. And she was right.

Now she stood on their shared balcony, gazing at the sunset; a soft breeze blowing her raven black hair and silk red robes. She had everything she'd wanted. Her coronation as Fire Lady was to be next week, and after that she would join her fiancé in ruling their country. They would be side by side; calming rebellions, signing peace treaties, and dodging assassination attempts together.

She knew things would be hard for a while; people with ties to the previous Fire Lord would no doubt do anything to usurp the one who took his place. But that was all the more reason to be by her lover's side. She knew that his judgment was would become clouded when it came to matters concerning his sire. But she was smart. And she held no love for his father either.

It was his fault that one of her childhood friends was now in prison. She'd watched him shape her into his tool. And then she'd lost her mind. After she'd helped her fiancé escape from an attempt to drag him back to his sire in chains.

She'd thrown her in jail to rot. And there she waited. They tortured her daily, simply for their enjoyment. But she waited, knowing that her efforts wouldn't return to her void; and after the war was ended, that she would return to his arms again.

She wasn't normally an emotional person. In fact, she never was; but she couldn't help but smile whenever she saw him. The same way she couldn't help but touch him; his face, his hair, his arms, him. She needed to make sure he was really there and not a dream.

She would often dream of him while in prison. He would be standing there, just out of her reach; and then she would wake up to her cold, dank, cell. But now she would have dreams of the terrors she witnessed in prison, only to wake up to find sanctuary in his arms. Her world was perfect now.

She was a Fire Nation noble woman, who was to be married to the Fire Lord. Any other woman would have committed treason to be in her position. But she wasn't there because of the diplomatic advantages; she was there because she knew that Zuko loved her. And she loved him back.

His time was consumed by peace efforts most days; but they would always find time to be together. They would sit by the duck pond, her head on his shoulder, and talk about brighter days ahead. They almost never spoke of the war, for it had divided them; they spoke of being together always. Even she knew that that was an immense lie though. With all that would come she had no doubt that they would be torn apart by old enemies. But even with if they were on opposite sides of the world, she would always find him; because she suffered for him, waiting endless days until she could see him again.

And now that they were together again, she would support, protect, and stand by him no matter what. Because no army could sever the bond they had. Not even her own knives could do that.

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He watched her face the wind with her eyes closed and her arms crossed in front of her chest. She didn't know that he was there and he stood there marveling at the peace her solemn expression held. She stood with the confidence she'd always had. That was something he'd always admired about his soon-to-be bride. She was always sure of what she was doing. She always knew she was right, and she was.

She was beautiful and strong and patient and gentle. What other people saw to be stiff and boring, he knew to be otherwise. She was someone born amongst war; but unlike others, she was born unafraid. She was prepared to do what she needed to in order to protect the ones she loved.

He still remembered when she'd defied his sister to save his life. She could have been killed. And it would have been his fault. He felt the unnecessary grief and guilt settle heavily on his chest as he considered life without her beside him.

It wasn't one worth living.

He walked over and stood behind her, wrapping his arms around her middle and kissing her hair lovingly. He heard a small sigh of contentment as she leaned back onto him.

She didn't seem to be startled by his presence or surprised at all. Perhaps she had known he was there.

She was, after all, sharp as knives.

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**Omigosh Mai is SO hard to write it isn't even funny O_O But there you go!  
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**Also, I found this very hard to write because I tend to ship Zutara most of the time. However, for these shorts I wanted to stay true to the shows original cannons.  
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**If you are a first time reader of my work: Welcome! Hello, pip pip, how do ya do? I have two (longer) fanfics that I'm working on currently (both Zutara) one is a fluffy one, the other is a war story so check those out if you want! ALSO I'm going to be doing oneshots about all of the main(ish) characters about where they are at a few months following the series finale.  
Azula's is already up in The Fall of the Phoenix so check it out!  
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**Love ya'll!  
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**Kmsitterley  
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**P.S. If you feel like making me very extremely happy, leave a review! ^_^  
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